This invention relates to a building block and, more particularly, to an insulating building block.
There are several types of insulating cementitious building blocks used in the building industry. The building blocks are economical, durable and readily available. These and other attributes make concrete building blocks an attractive choice for builders. There are problems however in using and manufacturing the insulated concrete building blocks. To create an insulated building block it is necessary that the insulation is surrounded by concrete. An insulation insert is ordinarily pressed into the center of the concrete block. After production and during transportation of the insulated block the insulation insert is often displaced from within the block and upon delivery it is not positioned flush to the surface of the block thus making it difficult for the mason to stack the block. In addition, the blocks are customarily 12 in. in width having two grout holes and therefore are heavy and cumbersome and when stacking a wall it is necessary to lift a block with two grout holes over the top of re-bars.
Many prior attempts have been made to alleviate the problems associated with insulating building blocks for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,185,434 (Jones) the building block is formed from two block parts, one including the front wall of the block and one including the rear wall of the block. These two parts are maintained spaced apart by a layer of insulating material. There are internal “A” and smaller end cavities “B” in Jones' invention that are positioned so that when a plurality of blocks are placed in juxtaposition with each other to form a wall, the overall dimensions of adjacent cavities B are about the same as the dimensions of the cavities A. The cavities, corners and sections 4 and 5 all have squared or linear configurations which could cause the easy fracturing of the cementitious block when a strain is exerted thereon. Also, Jones' block does not have the appearance or feel of a conventional block and could present an unaccustomed structure for the mason to work with. In addition, main sections 4 and 5 are approximately the same size which could prevent obtaining maximum insulation properties.
In Schmid, U.S. Pat. No. 4,551,959, an insulating building block is described having two spaced supportive parts separated from one another by an insulating material. The block of Schmid is substantially solid with no griping holes or means for the mason or builder to work with when lifting and placing the block in position.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,856,248 (Larson) a building element or block is described having linear sections of varied densities. All sections of Larson are squared or have a linear configuration which could cause easy fracturing of portions of the block. Also, there are no core holes in Larson's structure which would make it difficult for the mason to lift or place the blocks in position. Also, the sections of Larson identified by walls 80-82 and 90-92 are approximately the same size which does not provide maximum insulating properties of the block or building element.
In U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,986,049 and 5,066,440 (Kennedy et al) an improved building block is described having main sections 12 and 14 interlocked by T-shaped structures 34 and 36. Main sections 12 and 14 are approximately equal in size and do not provide any griping holes therein. Insulating portion 16 has thumb holes 154 which are intended to facilitate lifting of the blocks. Conventional cement masonry blocks have substantially large griping holes which workers are accustomed to using. In addition the insulating insert does not have sufficient structure to keep it from being pushed through the concrete block.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,321,926 (Kennedy et al) an improved building block is described with conventional large core holes, in addition to facilitating lifting, the holes also provide convenient conduits for accommodating wiring and providing an opening or openings for re-bars that are used to reinforce walls. However, the presence of two large core grout holes is a structural drawback because it can only be manufactured as a 12 in. conventional block, due to industry specifications and manufacturing limitations. In addition, when a mason builds a wall with a building block with two core grout holes the mason must lift every block over the re-bar during construction of the wall. This is a tiresome and difficult task.
Thus it is readily apparent that there is a long felt need for an insulated building block which has a single core hole to allow alternating installation over re-bar which can be manufactured as 8, 10 or 12 in. width building block. Also there is a need for an insulated building block with an insulating insert operatively arranged to maintain position within the block after manufacture and during transportation. There is also a long felt need for insulating insert having wedge holes in the insulation to accommodate wedges to maintain continuity of the insulation and an extended lip in the insulation insert that mates with an interior ledge of the concrete block.